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Minimum Wage Publications
Washington’s minimum wage standard: Protecting workers and families during tough economic times
12.14.2011 | Washington state has a high minimum wage standard that increases with the rate of inflation. This ensures full-time minimum wage workers are able to earn enough to stay above the official poverty line, which is not the case for many other states.
Testimony of Marilyn P. Watkins, Ph.D. against HB 1531 and for HB 1597: House Labor and Workforce Development Committee
02.11.2011 | Someone working full time year‐round at minimum wage in Washington actually earns above the federal poverty level for a family of one or two – but it takes significantly more than a poverty level income to pay basic expenses without public assistance.
Testimony of Marilyn P. Watkins, Ph.D. against HB 1258: House Labor and Workforce Development Committee
01.21.2011 | Allowing a sub-minimum wage during the first 680 hours of employment could potentially impact a large share of Washington’s workforce. It would reduce economic security and buying power for low wage working people and increase turnover, thereby adding to costs and reducing profitability for our state’s businesses.
Marilyn Watkins: Expert declaration on the minimum wage
12.91.2010 | Marilyn Watkins, Policy Director of the Economic Opportunity Institute, submitted this expert declaration on the minimum wage by request of the State of Washington. It supported the state's case, which defended Washington's automatic COLA against a lawsuit brought by corporate interests.
Letter from John Burbank to the WA Dept of Labor and Industries
09.15.2010 | This letter is intended as a resource for states whose minimum wage is tied to an automatic cost-of-living adjustment. When the Department of Labor and Industries questioned Washington's automatic COLA for 2011, EOI responded with this argument, which was later supported by a judge in Kittitas County court.
Federal Minimum Wage Bill Would Lower Wages in Washington
08.01.2006 | Reviews the negative impact of House Resolution 5970 on Washington's minimum wage law. Full Report »
Still Working Well: Washington's Minimum Wage and the Beginnings of Economic Recovery
01.02.2004
| Critics of Washington's groundbreaking minimum wage law have repeatedly
pointed to our state's relatively high minimum wage as a cause of our
higher than average unemployment rate. However, the data do not support
a causal connection. The United States as a whole and Washington state
have continued to lose jobs since the official end of the recession
in November 2001, but Washington has lost jobs at a lower rate than
the national average. Key
Findings » Full
Report »
Washington State Minimum Wage Fact Sheet
02.01.2003 | Frequently asked questions about Washington's minimum wage law. Fact Sheet »
Working Well in Washington: An Evaluation of the 1998 Minimum Wage Initiative
01.02.2003 | In effect for four years and through times of economic growth and decline, the minimum wage law has had a significant impact on the income of the state's lowest-paid workers and has had no significant impact on job or business growth. Full Report »
The Self-Sufficiency Standard for Washington State
09.01.2001 | Wider Opportunities for Women | Even though many families are not poor according to the official poverty measure, their incomes are inadequate. But what is adequate income—and how does this amount vary among different family types and different places? To answer that question we have a new measure of income adequacy, the Self-Sufficiency Standard. Full Report »
Increasing the Minimum Wage: Rebuttal to NFIB/WRB Anti-Minimum Wage Arguments
02.01.2001 | Prepared in response to position papers opposing Initiative 688, authored by the National Federation of Independent Business/Washington (NFIB) and the Washington Restaurant Association (WRA). (First prepared in October 1998; updated in January 2001). Full Report »
Washington State Minimum Wage Frequently Asked Questions
02.01.2001 | Reviews questions and answers about Washington's minimum wage law. Full Report »
The 1998 Minimum Wage Initiative in Washington State: A Case Study
10.01.1998 | Two-thirds of the electorate supported an initiative to increase Washington's minimum wage, making it the most popular ballot issue that year. Indeed, the minimum wage initiative was the only initiative to win in every single county in the state. Full Report »
Who Benefits from an Increase in the Minimum Wage?
10.01.1998 | David Macpherson produced a study entitled "The Effects of the Proposed 1999-2000 Washington Minimum Wage Increase" for the Employment Policies Institute. While the summary and body of the study are useful for the propaganda purposes of the opponents to the minimum wage increase, the data in the appendices undermine their own arguments regarding who the minimum wage will benefit. Full Report »
Employment and the Minimum Wage
10.01.1998 | Opponents of the proposed increase in the minimum wage assert that raising the minimum wage will result in lost jobs and lost job opportunities. This is an old argument which may correspond with neoclassical economic theory, but which is not related to the reality of minimum wage increases. Full Report »
Increasing the Minimum Wage: Initiative 688
09.01.1998 | Initiative 688, the Paycheck Protection Act, is a ballot measure in Washington State that will increase the minimum wage to $5.70 per hour on January 1, 1999 and to $6.50 per hour on January 1, 2000. Thereafter, the minimum wage will be adjusted annually by the rate of inflation. An increase in the minimum wage will be a key step in bringing low income workers into the middle class. Full Report »
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from the Economic Opportunity Institute. Liquid layout thanks
to Matthew James Taylor.